Press

The one big reason we changed our blogging strategy

28 March, 2016

Blogging is a regular task for everyone at contentgroup. I admit that despite working here for 3 ½ years I haven’t thought much about who I am writing for when it’s been my turn to submit a blog post. My writing so far has tended to be introductory advice about video production and how useful it is in content marketing. Useful to new readers perhaps, but it wasn’t making an impact.

Then a month ago our new Content Analyst, Zalesh Carter updated our blogging strategy with a simple edict that set off a little lightbulb in my brain:

We should write articles that help our returning readers.

Many of our blogs were aimed at new visitors with little knowledge of content marketing, but how does this offer fresh information to our loyal returning readers? It doesn’t. And if our readers aren’t served with more useful content we will lose them.

We sought to validate this new strategy with concrete data, so in a recent survey we asked respondents “How would you rate your knowledge of content marketing?” The results are still early but so far indicate that 64% of readers consider themselves to have an “intermediate and above” knowledge of content marketing. The data confirms that we should not be treating our readers as newbies, but instead serving up novel insights for experts.

“But hang on,” I’m sure you’re thinking, what about the 36% of readers who consider their level of knowledge to be novice or non-existent? This is the second part of the new strategy:

Create a library of resources aimed at bringing new visitors up to intermediate level.

These resources will come from videos, e-books and beginner’s guides, for example. This means our new visitors can get up to speed, and we don’t have to annoy our returning visitors and subscribers with stuff they already know.

So with a two-pronged strategy we aspire to be better publishers. A library of educational content for beginners to content marketing, and targeted blog articles aimed at the public sector readers who already know their way around.

Do you think this strategy would help you reach and influence your audience? With the data to back this change, we know we will be serving better content to all of our readers, novice or expert.

Ben is a screen industry professional with expertise in television and multimedia production. With more than 20 years’ experience in news and current affairs, Ben has worked as a camera operator and video editor for several Australian TV networks and has covered national and international news based in the Parliamentary Press Gallery in Canberra. At content group he has filmed and edited video projects for clients such as DFAT and the University of Canberra. He has an Associate Diploma in Art (TV Production) from CSU.